On a warm evening marking New York City’s approach to a rejuvenating post-pandemic summer, internationally recognized dancer and choreographer LaTasha Barnes led an ensemble through an exploration of jazz dance. A fusion of improv and arrangement, the thirty minute program ran as part of Works & Process, the art performance series commissioned in-person at the Guggenheim museum through June.
Jacob Banks moves quietly. Rather than shy away from life’s difficulties, Banks prefers to confront them directly in his songs, often courageously charting into territory over things that are too painful, embarrassing, or difficult to talk about.
“It Never Was You”, Hadar tells us, was the one jazz standard her mother insisted she record on the album. Named after the Kurt Weill classic, “It Never Was You” is singer-songwriter Hadar Orshalimy’s debut jazz album, comprised of jazz standards composed by legendary Jewish composers such as Oscar Hammerstein, the Gershwin brothers, Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers and more.
Sophisticated, indifferent, and cool in person, but sensitive, vulnerable, and intimate on stage, Miles Davis redefined the magic of jazz with his trumpet and his vision. Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool is Stanley Nelson’s new documentary, and first of its kind, to not only navigate through the legend’s life and career, but to also plunge into Miles Davis’ personhood.
If you enter the name “Buddy Bolden” into any search engine, you’re likely to not come up with much information about who that is. Buddy Bolden is a mystery that has yet to be entirely solved and a valuable yet hidden gem. Because of this, many people are not aware that he invented Jazz.
“Bolden” is the story of Buddy Bolden, the African American cornetist who is responsible for the development of the jazz genre.
It felt bombastic like it happened too quickly. But I’d sure as hell go back.
This season, The Knockturnal got into the holiday spirit with arguably the best jazz music New York City has to offer.
The new documentary on jazz musician John Coltrane, Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary, gives viewers an inside look on the legend’s life.
The film is filled with photos and videos of Coltrane that allow viewers to connect with his music as they learn more about his life as a saxophonist, husband and father. It goes over his early life, the steps he took to make it big in the music industry and the legacy he left behind. The film is raw and honest, telling the life story of Coltrane without leaving out all the unfortunate events such as the condition of the south, death of family members or heroin addiction that played a part in who he became as a jazz musician.
The film, written and directed by John Scheinfeld, works closely with the colleagues and family members of Coltrane. The words of John Coltrane are spoken by Denzel Washington all throughout the film, providing a first perspective narrative. His story is told through his sons Oran and Ravi Coltrane and his step daughters. Through the testimonies of some of his closest acquaintances like Sonny Rollins and Reggie Workman, viewers can understand Coltrane’s artistry through the eyes of artists he worked with closely. The film also includes commentary from musicians and other individuals the saxophonist has inspired such as President Bill Clinton, John Densmore and Common.
In Theaters April 14, 2017 at the IFC Center in New York.
Every Wednesday night, from 5pm onwards, the Shedd Aquarium hosts a jazz extravaganza called Jazzin’.